Suzuki Motor Corporation’s groundbreaking Team Suzuki CN Challenge initiative is back for Japan’s round of the 2025 FIM Endurance World Championship – but with a notable difference.
After contesting the 45th Coca-Cola Suzuka 8 Hours Endurance Race with a Suzuki GSX-R1000R motorcycle using 40 per cent bio-sourced fuel, Team Suzuki CN Challenge, which is operated by Suzuki employees, will enter the 46th edition of the legendary event from 1-3 August utilising 100 per cent sustainable fuel.
The move is in line with Suzuki’s aim to “achieve both environmental load reduction and performance at a higher level to accelerate the development of environmental performance technologies through actual riding under severe conditions in endurance races. By verifying valuable data obtained through race activities, Suzuki will promote technical feedback for future products”.
Toshihiro Suzuki, Representative Director and President of Suzuki Motor Corporation, said: “Although it was a whole new challenge for the company in the previous year’s participation, thanks to the support of partner companies including Yoshimura Japan, as well as enthusiastic fans, we were able to achieve eighth place overall. We will continue to participate this year as part of the company’s technology development in the sustainability field. This not only means that we’re simply continuing our activity, but we’re also having the purpose of overcoming various issues by setting higher goals, and I believe that by making products as one team along with our partner companies, it would lead to realising a better future.”
Tsuyoshi Tanaka, Executive General Manager, Motorcycle Operations, Suzuki Motor Corporation, said: “Last year, Team Suzuki CN Challenge completed the severe enduranceracing of Suzuka 8 Hours while reducing environmental loads, and by doingso, we were able to take one significant step toward the future of internalcombustion and motorsports. While overcoming the issues revealed from our previous activity, this year we will expand the use of sustainable items and make efforts for technology development toward taking on the challenge of further sustainabilityperformance. We will challenge in this year’s Suzuka 8 Hours by going beyondthe field of carbon neutrality and holding a theme of broadly reducing environmental loads.”
An impressive eighth overall and winner of the Experimental category in the 2024 Suzuka 8 Hours, Team Suzuki CN Challenge has tweaked its rider line-up as it pushes for an even better overall result this season.
It has recruited Spaniard Albert Arenas – third in last year’s Suzuka 8 Hours – and Japan’s Takuya Tsuda, a long-term Suzuki test and development rider, to join existing rider Étienne Masson. The Frenchman was part of the Yoshimura SERT Motul line-up that won the FIM Endurance World Championship for Teams in 2025. Team Suzuki CN Challenge will once again enter the Experimental category.
Team Suzuki CN Challenge essentials:
Motorcycle: Suzuki GSX-R1000R
Race number: #0
Fuel: TotalEnergies’ Excellium Racing 100 (100% certified* sustainable fuel)
Tyres: Bridgestone racing tyres with increased ratio of recycled and recyclable materials
Engine oil: Motul engine oil made using bio-sourced base oil
Fairings: JHI recycled carbon material (pre-preg material)
Fenders: Tras, Bcomp® (Unbleached natural flax fibre composite material)
Front brake: Sunstar Engineering non-heat treatment steel discs, Sunstar Engineering / Tokai Carbon low-dust pads
Battery: ELIIY Power LFP battery for motorcycle, storage battery for the garage
Silencer: Yoshimura Japan silencer made of TranTixxii™ -Eco (Eco-friendly titanium)
Team clothing: RS Taichi team polo shirt made of 100% recycled fabric
Excellium Racing 100 is a certified 100% sustainable product according to the mass balanced system applied by a voluntary certification organisation approved by the European Union
"Bcomp" is a registered trademark of Switzerland Bcomp Ltd
Team Suzuki CN Challenge team structure:
Team name: Team Suzuki CN Challenge
Test rider: Takuya Tsuda
Project leader/Team director: Shinichi Sahara
Technical manager: Koji Tamura
Crew chief: Takeshi Konno
The 46th Coca-Cola Suzuka 8 Hours Endurance Race takes place from 1-3 August. Click HERE for more information.
Original Source [ FIM EWC ]
